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Thursday, 20 November 2014

Blog Tour & Review: Little White Lies by R.C. Matthews

When attorney Madalyn Russell dumps her fiancé at the altar, she temporarily escapes the scrutiny of her friends and family on her honeymoon cruise. Too bad she forgot she is assigned to dine at the “newlywed” table on the fully booked cruise. Goodbye exquisite cuisine, hello standard buffet fare. Nothing will tempt her to enter that lion’s den. Or so she thinks.

When the board of directors orders devilishly handsome Royce Spencer to seek rest alone on a cruise, he sets his sights on Madalyn and offers a deliciously indecent proposal to her dining room dilemma. He’ll pose as her husband in exchange for companionship during the cruise. Royce is a gifted liar with a great sense of humor that has everyone at the newlywed table laughing and no one suspecting the truth.Is the opportunity to enjoy all the ship has to offer worth the little white lies they'll have to tell? What is it about Royce that makes Madalyn want to engage in a fling at the age of thirty for the first time in her life and toss her tightly held beliefs overboard?

The whirlwind love affair catches them both by surprise. Is it possible that in the midst of all the little white lies, they will each discover their soul mate? And when Royce is accused of white-collar crime with Madalyn as his key witness, will Madalyn finally learn that life is not always as black and white as it seems?

This is a gem of a
book, by an unknown (to me) author. I didn't know what to expect
when I began this story and was surprised how it ended too (in a good
way) It is the kind of book that just leaves you with a smile on
your face after you've finished the final words.

The story begins on
a cruise ship. Madelyn is on her honeymoon without the groom she
jilted at the altar the previous day. Her sister persuades her to
ignore what people may think and just enjoy the holiday. Royce is
taking a break from work on the orders of the board of directors.
Rest and relaxation are his only plans for the coming week. That is
until he meets Madelyn.

Right from the very
beginning Madelyn and Royce seemed destined to be together. Their
easy relationship is relaxed, romantic and sexy! They complimented
each other and at times I had to remind myself that they'd only been
around each other a few days. Being so comfortable together allows
them to deceive their fellow guests about their supposed marital
status because Madelyn had forgotten she'd arranged to dine at the
newlyweds table! Other on-board and ashore antics are amusing,
romantic and fun too. They are accompanied on their holiday
adventures with other guests, couples who all become firm friends.
It isn't until the cruise is over and everyone heads back to reality,
that Madelyn and Royce get to prove whether their relationship will
stand the test of time or if it is just a holiday fling.

Little White Lies is
well written and R.C. Matthews is an author I'm going to look out for
in the future. The interaction between all the characters flows
beautifully and the descriptions of life on-board the cruise-liner
paint a believable picture.

I recommend this
book to anyone looking for some light and humorous escapism, with a
luxury cruise-liner as the backdrop, good food and guests who are
known to be slightly economical with the truth.

5 STARS

***arc received
courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review***

They walked down a dark alley off the beaten path, and approached the Nuyorican Café. Madalyn gave Royce a skeptical look when they entered the little hole-in-the-wall establishment. It was a total dive bar, but packed with patrons dancing on the tiny dance floor, around tables and by the bar—wherever they could find a space. A live band with congas, bongos, horns, and a piano was playing to the rowdy crowd. The female singer had a thick, sultry voice and shook her hips provocatively to the tempo of the maracas she played. Royce gave Madalyn a broad smile and led her over to the bar where he ordered two of the local beer on tap. She nursed her beer while watching the dancers on the floor. Her right foot tapped along to the rhythm of the music. Royce rubbed her lower back, making a slow but definite trail down towards her behind. She was glad for the skimpy dress; it was warm with so many patrons packed inside the small space.

Gazing out onto the dance floor, Madalyn was amazed at how professional some of the couples looked. There were some beginners for sure, but for the most part, the crowd looked like they knew what they were doing. The atmosphere was fun and light, not pretentious like some of the new trendy places in Chicago. One young couple kept switching partners. Curious, she asked Royce what he thought they were doing.

“They’re probably from a local studio,” he surmised, “trying to drum up some business by giving out free lessons.”

Madalyn smiled up at Royce, “I'd like you to continue our lessons. You’re an excellent instructor.”

She turned back to watch the crowd and was taken by surprise when the young man approached them, holding out his hand to her with a broad smile of encouragement. Oh, hell no! Madalyn adamantly shook her head no, but he wasn’t taking no for an answer. He grabbed her hand and began to lead her out onto the dance floor. She glanced back at Royce, pleading with her eyes for him to save her, but he chuckled, shaking his head, and mouthed, “Have fun.”

What happened to not liking to share what’s his?

Madalyn checked out her partner. He couldn’t be more than 23 or 24 years old. He was tall, like Royce but with a slighter build. Not too bad to look at. He was wearing black, skin-tight pants that flared out dramatically at the bottom. His red silk shirt was open so low that she could see the contours of his chest muscles. Thick gold chains hung from his neck. She smiled at him, but started paying attention the moment he squared off his shoulders, assumed a wide legged stance and pulled her tightly against his chest. Why did she feel like she was about to star in Saturday Night Fever? Madalyn wondered if his name was Tony, and a little giggle erupted from her.

Her light mood deserted her as he extended her right arm and grabbed her under the right knee, hiking it up over his hip, before gyrating her ever so slowly in a deep backward bend, so that her hair fell off her back, hanging in the air. She felt completely exposed, and was thankful Royce didn’t have a camera with him to capture the horrified look on her face.Holy crap! She looked to Royce, begging him once again to save her. He pointed his right index finger to his eyes and then turned it towards her mouthing, “I’ll be watching you.”

Thanks a lot!

His abandonment in her greatest hour of need forced her to muster up some courage and take control of the situation. How often did a woman get to learn a sexy Latin dance from a local guru anyway? If Royce wanted a show, then that was what he would get.When “Tony” returned her to an upright stance, he paused with a salacious grin on his face, and began to deftly move them about the dance floor. They were a whirl of gyrating motion—her dress a glorious tornado of beaded fringe. Her partner continued to twirl and dip her, grabbing her hips and making her move in ways she didn’t know were possible. Madalyn molded her body to his, letting him take control of their movement. She finally caught Royce’s eyes and her nipples hardened from his purely carnal look. He was totally turned on. She could see it, and it made her insides simmer. Royce made his way towards them slowly, like a cougar after his prey, his eyes never leaving hers. But her partner saw him too and moved about the tiny floor, effectively avoiding Royce until the frenzied music came to an end. She stood breathless and weak-kneed in “Tony’s” arms, shocked at what had just happened, when she felt Royce slide up behind her. He placed his arm around her waist and she let her head fall back on his shoulder.

“I want to slide into you right now,” he groaned and pressed himself into her bottom.

She felt like she might combust. The music began again, this time with a slow and erotic beat that matched their mood. Royce swayed their hips back and forth to the beat, continuing to push her bottom into his rock hard groin. He grabbed her hand and twirled her around to face him, catching her mouth in a deep and punishing kiss. He ravished her, oblivious to the hoard of people around them sharing the small dance floor. He seemed hell-bent on giving her some lessons of his own, not willing to be one-upped by the little puppy that had just left her side. Madalyn liked this slower, tantalizing salsa—their bodies moving as one, his eyes staring intently into hers.

“Enough!” he groaned and pulled her by the hand out of the Café and into the fresh night air. He leaned her up against the outside wall, unable to resist another kiss. His tongue circled hers in that slow and lazy fashion, and she had the distinct feeling that he was giving her a preview of his plans for later.

“Let’s go back to the room,” he ordered. “I want you naked.”

She couldn’t help the giggle that escaped her. “What’s gotten into you, Royce?” she teased. “I thought you said you don’t like to share?”

“I don’t,” he insisted. “That boy wasn’t a threat, and I wanted to watch you dance. You were hot, baby!”

All joking aside, she was turned on too. She slowly slid her fingers into his thick hair, pulled his head down to hers and then turned his face to whisper in his ear, “Are you ready for another experiment?”

He immediately hailed a taxi. It was a blessedly short ride back to the ship.

R.C. Matthews was raised along with four siblings in the Metro Detroit area by deaf parents. In her senior year of high school, she joined the Year Book class and wrote many of the feature stories. She graduated from a liberal arts college with a B.A. in Accounting and German and continues to work as a certified public accountant. She lived for four years in Germany and two years in Boston, MA. She is a mother to two sons and stepmother to one stepson. Her husband patiently indulges her in her writing obsession. She enjoys traveling with her family and has been on four cruises in her lifetime. She also loves to read, down-hill ski, and play board games with her family.

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How many stars?

When posting a review, I don't usually add a star rating. That is something I do as part of cross-posting on Goodreads and Amazon. If you like stars, then all reviews I post would be at least 3 stars or above. Meaning, I enjoyed the book.